Really? She scares me. She is a physical therapist without a day's formal training in anything birth-related-- not lay midwifery, nothing. She is a 'childbirth educator' [which, I kid you not, is a 'credential' that can be achieved in a morning], and I think it's ludicrous for her to purport to write a book on the management of labor.

Huh. I assumed she was a midwife, since Bastyr's program is named after her. I read her Labor Progress Handbook a long time ago, and found it interesting. She's not too keen on epidurals - I know you disagree with that. She gives a lot of recommendations for positioning and low-tech comfort measures, remaining active while using an electric fetal monitor, doula stuff that strikes me as harmless and possibly quite useful. But now that I remember, there was a whole section about maneuvers for managing shoulder-dystocia and diagrams explaining pelvic exams and clinical interventions. This certainly does seem outside the scope of a PT/doula!

@RGE, yes, she was arrested for prostitution a few times in Asheville, when she didn't have enough paying midwifery clients to foot the bills.

Crazy. It didn't specify whether or not the parents of the baby knew she was unlicensed. If she told them she wasn't licensed, they probably should have known better. Most pregnant women who are uninsured qualify for Medicaid, and most OB/GYN's here have certified, licensed midwives on staff. All of it is such a sad situation.

This is so upsetting . I can't comprehend how anyone could have the sheer arrogance to think they are capable of delivering babies without sufficient training. It is beyond my comprehension as to why any mother (or father , as they have an equal say) would put the life of their child in danger. Obviously they are sucked in by the philosophy, but natural homebirths are completely possible - but you need a qualified person there to assess the risks and make 'that' call. A friend of a friend had a baby a few years back, birthed by an unqualified midwife , the baby was born brain damaged and died a few years later - horrendous. These people need stopping. How can they life with the guilt? Or are they that narcissistic or deluded that there is none?